New products in Home Skylights

New  home building products are often being made. I write today about home skylights. I have found them an excellent improvement. In the past, many older homes have small windows and poor internal lighting. One of the best improvements is a skylight into the Bathroom, Kitchen, Entrance hall or dark  Hallways. They can introduce light and warmth into narrow or poorly designed home.
Just like home windows they come in a wide range of shapes, sizes and options. The Tube skylight can introduce light into hard to get to places like above a stairwell, as it can fit through a wall.
Types of home skylights, include opening, double glazed, plastic, multi chromatic, with shades. There are just as many types of home skylights as there are windows.
All good home window suppliers also offer skylights, even the big bulky goods hardware stores, there are specialist suppliers who install as well. Some popular brand names in skylights include, Garron, Velux, Stegbar, Solatube, Double dome, Skydome, Pyralite, Eco-lite and Sun tube.
There are small solar tunnels skylights, with an internal mirror finish to guide the light around corners. These can be installed for hard to light, places like cupboards, hallways or toilets. If you are looking for high impact, low cost measures, a  home skylight is one of the best,and good for profit. Its a great addition.
Of course, so much more available from the FREE ebook: check it out!

Home Retrofit easy Green Home Ideas!

Discovered some quick and easy Green ideas for the home owner.
Below, I show some Fast and Easy Green ideas.

Given the Federal government’s aim for 20% of the nation’s energy to be generated from renewable  resources  by 2020. For  a new home, this move to a six star energy efficiency rating  is considered to add up to $10,000(MBA) to the cost of a home. Households in an established home might consider the implementation of ideas as soon as practicable.
Easy Features one can consider,as an addition.
1  A home Skydome power vent to remove hot air from the roof cavity. It can operate on a heat sensitive power switch.It reaches a certain heat level, then switches on to extract this hot roof air.
2  Underfloor insulation: just as everyone now expects insulation in the home roof. I have just removed the carpets and polished the floor. I find the  timber floor is a relatively poor insulator. Might have to do this one myself this winter.
3  Energy efficient glass in your windows. Home Glass can have an E rating, its a guide to its energy transmission level. There are some cheap and effective PVC coatings that are available these days, too.
4 Home Wall insulation is some thing quite cheap and effective too. One employs a professional service to drill holes and pump inert foam into the external wall cavity; where it solidifies and stablilizes.

5  Last winter, given the rise in electricity prices. I installed seals around all the doors and windows. Its such a cheap, fast effective way to make a big difference. At a price of about $1.5 per door its cheap.
6 Discovered a power saving ” sleep mode” switch for the big TV. Claims it will cut the home power bill. Some experts claim that up to 10 % of you home power consumption , can be from the sleep mode of electrical goods. Hope so!

So much more at the FREE ebook site !

Government Cash for home Environment!!!

Government policy on the Environment will always be in a state of change. I believe a continuing flux of measures will be introduced and applied all the time. The change to a lower carbon intensive  economy will take many years. Home owners who have missed the last scheme will have access to the next scheme.  No need to become disheartened or confused, just research the latest and apply what suits best.

The announced rise in electricity prices is a likely harbinger of future rises.The switch from a cash rebates to the sale of REC Renewable Energy Certificates has been unsuccessful. But now due to major reworking of the schemes. The newest scheme will be much better. The government has moved to secure the valuation of REC at a $40 per Kilowatt hour, and this is seen as a good price. Previously, after the failure of the World Copenhagen climate summit REC had fallen to low levels. Apparently the Renewable Energy Target scheme is to aim for 20% of energy from renewable sources by 2020. This will be the equivalent of $6,200 for a  home based 1.5Kw solar panel  power system: and $1,200 for a standard home solar hot water system.

Breakthrough New Technology for Windows.

I find that a very large factor for home insulation is the windows, both their size and the glass product. Windows with aluminium frames can be excellent conductors of heat and very poor insulators. A modern trend  is to improve the home window with PVC cover windows. This gives one most of the benefits on double glazing but at a mere fraction of the cost. In Australia, the public appear to be scared of the cost of home double glazed windows. But if they are built in first into a new home, the extra cost can be marginal, it is after all, mainly labour. In Europe, one might  consider it perfectly reasonable to have triple glazed windows!!!!
Another less expensive option is the Ceramic window insert : Such as the Huper Optik (see huperoptik.com)

This home window insert can deflect up to 70% of heat ingress, while still maintaining the valuable sunlight through.The film product has embeded in it, titanium nitride beads that block the UV light, while letting visible light through.

Another interesting development is the potential for home windows to also be solar panels. This is where a largely transparent window can be electronically frosted, using photo- voltaic embeded glass. Currently, this is being tested in commercial buildings  and could be availabe for the  home by 2011 (see solar.tm).
So much more to read from the FREE ebook ! Its so easy.

Real Life, home Water Saving Environment ideas!!!

Given I have been tackled about the home Environment, What have I actually done for water saving? Well thrash me with a damp lettuce leaf !!!
I note below, a short list of things I have done.
1   Always chosen highly rated WELLS water appliances.
2   Installed  Front loading washer, which saves 60% of the water compared to a top loader.
3   Built grey water recycling systems.
4   Installed highly rated modern dual flush cisterns. These use 3.5 litres a  flush, saving a home some 35,000 litres a year.

5   Built Rainwater tanks for the garden. Connected the home tanks to the internal cisterns.
6   Removed garden sprinklers and replaced with a drip irrigation system.
7   Replaced taps and shower heads with low flow models.
8   For the garden beds, I have spread tonnes of red gum mulch.
9   Removed delicate plants like Daphne, Chrysanthenum, Azaleas, replaced them with hardy native plants.
10 Established low growing Herbal and couch lawns.
11 Check all my water using appliances with water efficiency websites. Like www.smartwater.com.au
12 Planted deep watering Agricultural  pipes, for new bushes.
13  Built gravel bed gardens.
14 When planting new bushes I place a large rock, adjacent as a rock mulch.
Thus I have made a start to reducing and monitoring water use.
So much more at the FREE ebook site, download it!

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